Olympic hero Baxter tests positive

Alain Baxter, Britain's first Olympic skiing medallist, is set to be sensationally stripped of his bronze after testing positive for a banned stimulant.

The 28-year-old Scot, whose slalom bronze 11 days ago at the Salt Lake City Games was hailed as one of the greatest performances ever by a British winter Olympian, tested positive for methamphetamine, the British Olympic Association revealed this afternoon.

Baxter, who said he was " devastated" by the news, was left protesting his innocence today, insisting: "I have never knowingly taken any medicine or substance to improve my performance."

Yet if the charges against him are confirmed by International Olympic Committee chiefs, the man they call "the Highlander" could become the first British Winter Olympic medallist ever to be stripped of his prize.

The BOA announced it had been notified by the IOC that one of its athletes in Salt Lake City had produced a positive sample, and Baxter said he had decided to admit that he was the competitor in question because he is determined to prove his innocence. "Late on Friday afternoon, I was telephoned by Simon Clegg, Team GB's chef de mission, who told me that he had been advised by the IOC's inquiry commission that the sample I had produced following my slalom performance at the Games contained traces of a banned substance," Baxter said in a statement.

"Naturally I am devastated by this news. I have therefore decided to make public that I am the athlete in question because I have never knowingly taken any medicine or substance to improve my performance and, as such, believe that I am entirely innocent.

"I am now working with lawyers and medical experts to present my case to the IOC's inquiry commission, which I am advised is unlikely to convene until next week, with a view to defending myself successfully against the charges of doping."

The BOA said it would not make any further comment until the appeal procedures were completed.

Yet the positive test could still prove a huge embarrassment for what had been hailed as the most successful British Winter Olympic challenge for 66 years.

Methamphetamine is a potent stimulant which is best known for being a recreational drug rather than a performance enhancer.

Baxter had secured his bronze, one of the unlikeliest medals of the entire Games, after he had injured his knee in training just a few days before the competition. He had to improve five places on the second run of the slalom as many of his leading opponents slid out of contention. It was predicted that his success could earn him a small fortune and the national skiing federation was already looking at ways of using him as the figurehead for future bids to popularise the sport.

Former British Winter Olympian Graham Bell today insisted Baxter "is not a cheat". He said: "I was on the team with Alain for eight years and I'm confident he is not a cheat."

Baxter joined Alex Coomber and Rhona Martin's curlers on the medal rostrum to make it our best post-War Games.